The present disclosure generally relates to a protective enclosure for, and a method of, protecting a patient on a stretcher, and, more particularly, to safeguarding the patient's privacy, as well as to shielding the patient from inclement weather.
Stretchers are frequently used by ambulance and hospital personnel and in routine and emergency situations to transport an injured or ill individual. The individual is placed on a stretcher and wheeled or carried from the scene of an accident or other location to an ambulance, and from the ambulance into an emergency room of a hospital. If the emergency room is busy, the individual may remain on the stretcher for a long period of time until medical care arrives, and sometimes, especially if an empty bed is not readily available, medical care may be administered to the individual while being supported on the stretcher in the emergency room. Even after being admitted to the hospital, the individual may be moved from place to place on the stretcher for medical treatment.
As satisfactory as such stretchers have been in transporting individuals, patient privacy concerns arise for such individuals on stretchers. Many individuals do not wish to be stared at by strangers, and often may feel embarrassed when moved on a stretcher in public. Many individuals value their privacy and do not wish to have their faces and identities exposed in ambulances, emergency rooms and hospitals. In addition, such individuals are sometimes exposed to inclement weather, e.g., rain, snow or hail, while being transported in a supine or sitting position and are not protected from the elements.
Accordingly, it would be desirable to provide patient privacy and protection from inclement weather to such individuals on stretchers.
Skilled artisans will appreciate that elements in the figures are illustrated for simplicity and clarity and have not necessarily been drawn to scale. For example, the dimensions and locations of some of the elements in the figures may be exaggerated relative to other elements to help to improve understanding of embodiments of the present invention.
The structural and method components have been represented where appropriate by conventional symbols in the drawings, showing only those specific details that are pertinent to understanding the embodiments of the present invention so as not to obscure the disclosure with details that will be readily apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art having the benefit of the description herein.